The Favor
The following story line is mine. Don't try to copy it cause I'll get mad
In a like vain, Star Trek The Next Generation and all characters are the sole property of someone other than me.
"Ah, Jean-Luc, at last!" Lwaxana Troi cooed as Jean-Luc strode through the door to the large conference room on the 3rd deck.
"Forgive me for being late" Jean-Luc nodded at the assembled, "My son recently arrived on board"
"Of course" Lwaxana waved a hand as if dismissing a servant, then she smiled broadly. Jean-Luc steeled himself for a tirade but she said nothing more. Surprised, he took a seat at the head of the table. He had never been in her presence when she was working as an Ambassador. Was it possible she controlled her instinctive arrogance at a conference table? If she did, he made note to always have a conference table between the two of them. Raylyn and Will ambled in behind him. They had agreed to come to this part of the meeting, where Jean-Luc would have to admit to his fellow delegates what condition he was really in.
"Captain Picard" a low voice Jean-Luc knew well said, "A pleasure to see you again" Spock sat with his fingers steepled, a look of pure non- emotion on his face. He was a good actor.
"Ambassador Spock" Jean-Luc nodded back, "Always an honor." The Enterprise's mission to rescue Spock from Romulus had cumulated in so much more here than it had in his native reality. The differences between the Romulan Empire and the Klingon Empire and between the Romulans and Vulcans and the Federation had all been overcome. The Romulans had not rejoined the Vulcan's, nor had they taken up the Vulcan way of suppressing their emotions, and Jean-Luc was not privy to all the details. He knew, however, that things had been...settled. The Klingons still distrusted the Romulans, and vice versa, but they were willing to work together, when necessitated. The Romulans had allied themselves with the Federation, but it was a loose affiliation.
"Allow me to introduce the Klingon delegates, Ambassadors Worf and Ka'lar" Worf grunted and Ka'lar nodded serenely.
"Ambassador T'auri has not joined us" Spock observed.
"Yes. I had something which I preferred to present to you before the Romulan Ambassador joins us" The loose affiliation the Romulans preferred worried Jean-Luc. He did not want to reveal his weakness to their representative.
Lwaxana was giving him a look. She of course, being part of his family, knew everything already.
"I'm afraid we have all been put in an difficult position" Jean-Luc told them, "An entity known as Q, a nearly all-powerful being, has displaced me"
"Displaced you?" Ka'lar repeated as a question.
"Q took him from his native reality and planted him in ours" Will told them bluntly. They got different reactions.
"Fascinating" from Spock. A grunt from Worf.
"What does that mean?" from Ka'lar.
"It means that, I am not the Jean-Luc Picard that is most familiar with the circumstances of this universe" Jean-Luc said.
"The Cardassians will not talk if you are not there" Worf said gruffly.
"The Cardassians are obstinate people" Spock agreed.
"This does not mean that I can not act as Earth's delegate" Jean-Luc said, "I have been studying your recent history and I will be ready for the talks"
"With a working knowledge of two weeks?" Ka'lar objected with a small chuckle to soften the blow, "Sorry Captain, but I don't see how. You can't possibly be familiar with everything that has happened in two weeks"
"Nonsense" Lwaxana piped up, "Jean-Luc will be perfectly ready"
"The events leading up to these circumstances vary only by a fraction of a degree from the events that have occurred in my own reality" Jean-Luc told them, "For the most part, I am already familiar with the events."
"Q assured us he could to the job" Raylyn told them.
"It is illogical to take the word of the being who instigated this problem" Spock replied.
"Maybe, but we don't have much choice do we?" Raylyn responded, "The Cardassians specifically requested Captain Picard and they aren't going to talk without him. If he doesn't show up with the rest of you they may just get offended and withdraw."
"That would be most unfortunate"
"Oh, Mr. Spock you have a gift for understatement!" Lwaxana blustered, "We all know it would be disastrous! The Borg are at war with the Dominion at the moment, but you know who ever comes out on top is going to come after us next. Whether it's the Dominion or the Borg makes little difference. We need the allies" Jean-Luc had read up on the Dominion. They used grown soldiers called Jem'Hadar to fight their battles. The Jem'Hadar were completely single minded and specifically designed for fighting. And since all the Dominion had to do was to grow more when needed, they were nearly unstoppable. While Jean-Luc was enjoying the pleasures of having a large family he knew this reality was in immense danger. A danger he could hopefully help to alleviate.
"The war between them is severely damaging both sides" Ka'lar noted.
"The loser will be defeated" Worf added, "And the victor will be weak"
"It is illogical to assume that, Mr. Worf" Spock objected, "We can not know how their war will turn out"
"At the moment, what we need to worry about is the talks with the Cardassians" Jean-Luc interrupted, "Now, it is apparent that the Captain of the Enterprise must be there, and unless Q decides to replace me with the Jean-Luc Picard native to this reality, I am the one who is going to have to do it"
"A logical conclusion" Spock commented.
"For my part, I will be as familiar as possible with everything I need to know. Mr. Data is assisting me in my research, as are Commanders Riker and Picard-Riker" Jean-Luc said.
"What do you need from us, Captain?" Lwaxana asked, as it didn't appear Ka'lar or Worf were going to.
"There is unfortunately a margin for error" Jean-Luc said, "I thought it best that you all know the circumstances. If, during the talks, I do or say something which is...wrong...it may be up to one of you to stop me and fix the damage."
"Lets hope that doesn't happen" Ka'lar said, "I get the feeling the Cardassians won't take kindly to any 'mistakes'"
"Agreed" Jean-Luc said, "Now, I think Ambassador T'auri should be joining us in a moment. Do you think it prudent to inform her as well?"
"No!" Worf said immediately, "She will only perceive it as a weakness"
"I agree with Ambassador Worf" Spock said.
"The woman is insufferable" Lwaxana started, "She'd probably insist that you not go, Jean-Luc" The Captain nodded. Then he had done the right thing.
"If you don't need us for anything then?" Will asked. None of the Ambassador's said anything and so Will and Raylyn left. Ambassador T'auri walked in before the doors had even closed.
"Ambassador T'auri" Jean-Luc said as he stood and made the appropriate introductions. T'auri was a typical Romulan, abrupt and defensive. A grueling three hours later she all but stomped out of the conference room. They had all been ordered to work together, to agree to the same set of terms. The meeting was so they could all agree on what they would ask of the Cardassians, and what they would give. T'auri had been voted down on a number of demands the Romulans wished to make, which were extensive, and to what extent the allies would grant the demands of the Cardassians, which the Romulans had set in a very narrow set of parameters. Jean-Luc felt drained, but he knew this was all just a prelude to what was coming. He still had two weeks to prepare.
"What an insufferable woman!" Lwaxana immediately declared. Jean-Luc privately agreed with her. All of the delegates stood and stretched their legs. Lwaxana immediately fell to idle chit-chat, not something Spock nor either of the Klingons was particularly interested in.
"Indeed?" Spock raised a brow at some comment Jean-Luc had missed.
"You should come to dinner tonight, Mr. Spock!" Lwaxana suggested boisterously, "And you too!" She flipped a hand at Ka'lar, "You can bring your son! He'll love it, we're having it in the holideck. The children will love to have a new playmate!"
"We'd be delighted" Ka'lar accepted, though Worf didn't look delighted. Spock nodded his acceptance as well.
"Ah, good! Come along, Jean-Luc, I'm famished!" Lwaxana wrapped her arm through his and started leading him away.
"If you'll excuse us" Jean-Luc had time to say before they had unceremoniously left the rest of the ambassadors.
She led him to Ten-Forward. There weren't too many crewmembers around as it was the middle of a shift. Jean-Luc was thankful for that at least. He did not often spend much time in Ten-Forward, and he preferred that there were not many people to witness whatever debolcle Lwaxana would make of him over lunch.
"Can I get you something?" a gentle voice asked when they had seated themselves.
"Guinan" Jean-Luc breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her comforting face.
"Captain." she replied with a small nod, "Ambassador. What can I get for you?"
"I would love a bowl of Dubarian pasta" Lwaxana told her, "And a glass of Betazoid Champaign"
"Ah, fettuccini, please Guinan, and a cup of tea?" Jean-Luc added. The always serene woman nodded and went off to collect their orders.
"Now, Jean-Luc, what did you think of Jason?" Lwaxana demanded.
"He seems a fine young man" Jean-Luc answered.
"A bit wild, rough around the edges, but then Kamor is wildly unsophisticated" Lwaxana ranted, "Amazing Miranda did just a good job with him as she did. Not that you didn't have a hand in it, my dear Jean-Luc. Who knows what would have happened to the boy if it hadn't been for those trips into civilization when he was a child? Raylyn would always come back with fantasies of being a little hooligan just like him. The trouble she would drag Deanna into after those visits!" She was talking aimlessly and Jean-Luc let her. At least she wasn't embarrassing him.
"Here you are" Guinan said a few moments later when she set plates and glasses in front of them.
"Thank you Guinan" Lwaxana said, surprising Jean-Luc. She had said it with the utmost respect. Beverly had mentioned that Guinan sometimes joined them for their family dinners and so the two older women were probably at least acquainted. But the respect that resonated in Lwaxana's voice Jean- Luc recognized as the kind of respect only those who were familiar with how wise Guinan actually was had.
"Your welcome, Lwaxana. How is Kestra?" Guinan inquired.
"She's wonderful!" Lwaxana told her, "Michaela has started walking. We may have to hire another maid to keep an eye on her. Kestra won't be able to control the girl in her condition. She's due in four months!"
"Each of the older ones had guards, didn't they?" Guinan asked. Lwaxana nodded.
"We're hoping we won't need another one. Out of seven children you'd think one of them could be tame!" Apparently Kestra's (seven?!) children had a penchant for hurting themselves. Were any of the younglings in his family tame? Jean-Luc wondered. Guinan smiled the way she did and turned to the Captain.
"I hear Jason has come" she said. Jean-Luc nodded.
"I haven't seen him in years. How is he?" she inquired.
"Well, I guess" Jean-Luc answered. He couldn't say more. Guinan knew about his odd predicament, she had figured it out herself. She still didn't much care for Q.
"You're coming to dinner tonight, aren't you dear?" Lwaxana wanted to know as she ate her pasta.
"I wouldn't miss it" Guinan smiled and walked away. Jean-Luc would have called it a mischievous smile.
The following story line is mine. Don't try to copy it cause I'll get mad
In a like vain, Star Trek The Next Generation and all characters are the sole property of someone other than me.
"Ah, Jean-Luc, at last!" Lwaxana Troi cooed as Jean-Luc strode through the door to the large conference room on the 3rd deck.
"Forgive me for being late" Jean-Luc nodded at the assembled, "My son recently arrived on board"
"Of course" Lwaxana waved a hand as if dismissing a servant, then she smiled broadly. Jean-Luc steeled himself for a tirade but she said nothing more. Surprised, he took a seat at the head of the table. He had never been in her presence when she was working as an Ambassador. Was it possible she controlled her instinctive arrogance at a conference table? If she did, he made note to always have a conference table between the two of them. Raylyn and Will ambled in behind him. They had agreed to come to this part of the meeting, where Jean-Luc would have to admit to his fellow delegates what condition he was really in.
"Captain Picard" a low voice Jean-Luc knew well said, "A pleasure to see you again" Spock sat with his fingers steepled, a look of pure non- emotion on his face. He was a good actor.
"Ambassador Spock" Jean-Luc nodded back, "Always an honor." The Enterprise's mission to rescue Spock from Romulus had cumulated in so much more here than it had in his native reality. The differences between the Romulan Empire and the Klingon Empire and between the Romulans and Vulcans and the Federation had all been overcome. The Romulans had not rejoined the Vulcan's, nor had they taken up the Vulcan way of suppressing their emotions, and Jean-Luc was not privy to all the details. He knew, however, that things had been...settled. The Klingons still distrusted the Romulans, and vice versa, but they were willing to work together, when necessitated. The Romulans had allied themselves with the Federation, but it was a loose affiliation.
"Allow me to introduce the Klingon delegates, Ambassadors Worf and Ka'lar" Worf grunted and Ka'lar nodded serenely.
"Ambassador T'auri has not joined us" Spock observed.
"Yes. I had something which I preferred to present to you before the Romulan Ambassador joins us" The loose affiliation the Romulans preferred worried Jean-Luc. He did not want to reveal his weakness to their representative.
Lwaxana was giving him a look. She of course, being part of his family, knew everything already.
"I'm afraid we have all been put in an difficult position" Jean-Luc told them, "An entity known as Q, a nearly all-powerful being, has displaced me"
"Displaced you?" Ka'lar repeated as a question.
"Q took him from his native reality and planted him in ours" Will told them bluntly. They got different reactions.
"Fascinating" from Spock. A grunt from Worf.
"What does that mean?" from Ka'lar.
"It means that, I am not the Jean-Luc Picard that is most familiar with the circumstances of this universe" Jean-Luc said.
"The Cardassians will not talk if you are not there" Worf said gruffly.
"The Cardassians are obstinate people" Spock agreed.
"This does not mean that I can not act as Earth's delegate" Jean-Luc said, "I have been studying your recent history and I will be ready for the talks"
"With a working knowledge of two weeks?" Ka'lar objected with a small chuckle to soften the blow, "Sorry Captain, but I don't see how. You can't possibly be familiar with everything that has happened in two weeks"
"Nonsense" Lwaxana piped up, "Jean-Luc will be perfectly ready"
"The events leading up to these circumstances vary only by a fraction of a degree from the events that have occurred in my own reality" Jean-Luc told them, "For the most part, I am already familiar with the events."
"Q assured us he could to the job" Raylyn told them.
"It is illogical to take the word of the being who instigated this problem" Spock replied.
"Maybe, but we don't have much choice do we?" Raylyn responded, "The Cardassians specifically requested Captain Picard and they aren't going to talk without him. If he doesn't show up with the rest of you they may just get offended and withdraw."
"That would be most unfortunate"
"Oh, Mr. Spock you have a gift for understatement!" Lwaxana blustered, "We all know it would be disastrous! The Borg are at war with the Dominion at the moment, but you know who ever comes out on top is going to come after us next. Whether it's the Dominion or the Borg makes little difference. We need the allies" Jean-Luc had read up on the Dominion. They used grown soldiers called Jem'Hadar to fight their battles. The Jem'Hadar were completely single minded and specifically designed for fighting. And since all the Dominion had to do was to grow more when needed, they were nearly unstoppable. While Jean-Luc was enjoying the pleasures of having a large family he knew this reality was in immense danger. A danger he could hopefully help to alleviate.
"The war between them is severely damaging both sides" Ka'lar noted.
"The loser will be defeated" Worf added, "And the victor will be weak"
"It is illogical to assume that, Mr. Worf" Spock objected, "We can not know how their war will turn out"
"At the moment, what we need to worry about is the talks with the Cardassians" Jean-Luc interrupted, "Now, it is apparent that the Captain of the Enterprise must be there, and unless Q decides to replace me with the Jean-Luc Picard native to this reality, I am the one who is going to have to do it"
"A logical conclusion" Spock commented.
"For my part, I will be as familiar as possible with everything I need to know. Mr. Data is assisting me in my research, as are Commanders Riker and Picard-Riker" Jean-Luc said.
"What do you need from us, Captain?" Lwaxana asked, as it didn't appear Ka'lar or Worf were going to.
"There is unfortunately a margin for error" Jean-Luc said, "I thought it best that you all know the circumstances. If, during the talks, I do or say something which is...wrong...it may be up to one of you to stop me and fix the damage."
"Lets hope that doesn't happen" Ka'lar said, "I get the feeling the Cardassians won't take kindly to any 'mistakes'"
"Agreed" Jean-Luc said, "Now, I think Ambassador T'auri should be joining us in a moment. Do you think it prudent to inform her as well?"
"No!" Worf said immediately, "She will only perceive it as a weakness"
"I agree with Ambassador Worf" Spock said.
"The woman is insufferable" Lwaxana started, "She'd probably insist that you not go, Jean-Luc" The Captain nodded. Then he had done the right thing.
"If you don't need us for anything then?" Will asked. None of the Ambassador's said anything and so Will and Raylyn left. Ambassador T'auri walked in before the doors had even closed.
"Ambassador T'auri" Jean-Luc said as he stood and made the appropriate introductions. T'auri was a typical Romulan, abrupt and defensive. A grueling three hours later she all but stomped out of the conference room. They had all been ordered to work together, to agree to the same set of terms. The meeting was so they could all agree on what they would ask of the Cardassians, and what they would give. T'auri had been voted down on a number of demands the Romulans wished to make, which were extensive, and to what extent the allies would grant the demands of the Cardassians, which the Romulans had set in a very narrow set of parameters. Jean-Luc felt drained, but he knew this was all just a prelude to what was coming. He still had two weeks to prepare.
"What an insufferable woman!" Lwaxana immediately declared. Jean-Luc privately agreed with her. All of the delegates stood and stretched their legs. Lwaxana immediately fell to idle chit-chat, not something Spock nor either of the Klingons was particularly interested in.
"Indeed?" Spock raised a brow at some comment Jean-Luc had missed.
"You should come to dinner tonight, Mr. Spock!" Lwaxana suggested boisterously, "And you too!" She flipped a hand at Ka'lar, "You can bring your son! He'll love it, we're having it in the holideck. The children will love to have a new playmate!"
"We'd be delighted" Ka'lar accepted, though Worf didn't look delighted. Spock nodded his acceptance as well.
"Ah, good! Come along, Jean-Luc, I'm famished!" Lwaxana wrapped her arm through his and started leading him away.
"If you'll excuse us" Jean-Luc had time to say before they had unceremoniously left the rest of the ambassadors.
She led him to Ten-Forward. There weren't too many crewmembers around as it was the middle of a shift. Jean-Luc was thankful for that at least. He did not often spend much time in Ten-Forward, and he preferred that there were not many people to witness whatever debolcle Lwaxana would make of him over lunch.
"Can I get you something?" a gentle voice asked when they had seated themselves.
"Guinan" Jean-Luc breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her comforting face.
"Captain." she replied with a small nod, "Ambassador. What can I get for you?"
"I would love a bowl of Dubarian pasta" Lwaxana told her, "And a glass of Betazoid Champaign"
"Ah, fettuccini, please Guinan, and a cup of tea?" Jean-Luc added. The always serene woman nodded and went off to collect their orders.
"Now, Jean-Luc, what did you think of Jason?" Lwaxana demanded.
"He seems a fine young man" Jean-Luc answered.
"A bit wild, rough around the edges, but then Kamor is wildly unsophisticated" Lwaxana ranted, "Amazing Miranda did just a good job with him as she did. Not that you didn't have a hand in it, my dear Jean-Luc. Who knows what would have happened to the boy if it hadn't been for those trips into civilization when he was a child? Raylyn would always come back with fantasies of being a little hooligan just like him. The trouble she would drag Deanna into after those visits!" She was talking aimlessly and Jean-Luc let her. At least she wasn't embarrassing him.
"Here you are" Guinan said a few moments later when she set plates and glasses in front of them.
"Thank you Guinan" Lwaxana said, surprising Jean-Luc. She had said it with the utmost respect. Beverly had mentioned that Guinan sometimes joined them for their family dinners and so the two older women were probably at least acquainted. But the respect that resonated in Lwaxana's voice Jean- Luc recognized as the kind of respect only those who were familiar with how wise Guinan actually was had.
"Your welcome, Lwaxana. How is Kestra?" Guinan inquired.
"She's wonderful!" Lwaxana told her, "Michaela has started walking. We may have to hire another maid to keep an eye on her. Kestra won't be able to control the girl in her condition. She's due in four months!"
"Each of the older ones had guards, didn't they?" Guinan asked. Lwaxana nodded.
"We're hoping we won't need another one. Out of seven children you'd think one of them could be tame!" Apparently Kestra's (seven?!) children had a penchant for hurting themselves. Were any of the younglings in his family tame? Jean-Luc wondered. Guinan smiled the way she did and turned to the Captain.
"I hear Jason has come" she said. Jean-Luc nodded.
"I haven't seen him in years. How is he?" she inquired.
"Well, I guess" Jean-Luc answered. He couldn't say more. Guinan knew about his odd predicament, she had figured it out herself. She still didn't much care for Q.
"You're coming to dinner tonight, aren't you dear?" Lwaxana wanted to know as she ate her pasta.
"I wouldn't miss it" Guinan smiled and walked away. Jean-Luc would have called it a mischievous smile.